le papillon

Isabella, is the name of the butterfly, one of the most beautiful in Europe, that Julien (Michel Serrault) has been seeking for years as a promise to his son who irrecoverably passed away with chronic depression....Elsa (Claire Bouanich) is the little girl who's mother 'fell in love' and 'got pregnant' when she was only sixteen...and who works as a nurse assistant with long and odd working hours....often unable to pick Elsa up from school....Elsa, a sweet and inquisitive 8-yr old who is often left on her own, manages to worm her way into her neighbour Julien's company... and persuades him to take her along to look for Isabella.....up in the mountains, on a sloping hill where they might be able to find this rare specie that lives only for three days and three nights in summer...such as the life of a butterfly might be.

it became a wonderful learning experience for both, the moody pensioner who has long forgotten what it is like to be a child, and the neglected girl who has never seen cows, nor hay, nor what it is like to be listening to the sounds of nature.....they also learnt to love each other despite obvious frustrations at times....and it is also during the short period when Elsa was 'missing from the city for days' that her desperate mother began to question her role in bringing her up....

this film (directed by Philippe Muyl) is a simple story of struggles in 'imperfect' lives, of keeping promises, of being true to oneself....of the different sacrifices we all have to make and of the seemingly simple but often the most difficult thing to do: telling those whom you care so much about that you really do love them.

there are also subtle cynicisms relating to the decadence of societal values, and sparks of beautiful moments when Elsa probes Julien with simple yet profound questions about life and love..... it is little wonder that i find myself identifying most with little Elsa (as i have also found myself on my own a lot when i was little....) and the fact that she found a 'mentor' in Julien....because i myself have been very fortunate to have found Julien-like mentors....and one day, i'll tell you about uncle Albert and auntie Helena....with whom i have had wonderful correspondences for over some 10 years....and how they have enriched my thinking and perspectives in life....and how they unwittingly enabled and encouraged me to open up and be inquisitive about things via the space created by pen and paper and the importance of meaningful human interaction.....

posted by ~overacuppa~ on Sunday, 23 November, 2003 at 16:21 hrs